I'd been salivating over this barrel for a while, so when mine finally came in the mail, I was overjoyed, to say the least. It was a couple of days til I could get it out in the woods (y'know, job, wife, beer, etc.) but when I did, I put it through the paces with a specific eye to reviewing it here. You'll find extensive reviews on pbreview, but take what you see there with a grain of salt. I think one chowderhead actually said he shot a 12 MOA at 100 yards...if you believe that, I've got some wonderful vineyards in the Sahara you should think about investing in.

Anyway, enough chitchat. Here's the straight poop. I test my gun by a stretch of the Schuylkill River, cause it's easy to guesstimate wind speed by the surface activity of the river. Anyway, the wind was low, and I chrono'd around 255...hard to say for sure, since I have to play on CO2, and the weather's been humid lately. So figure on a 10-point variance, depending on delay and whatnot.

I was shooting whitebox paint ('cause I play with whitebox, unless I think someone will see me, gasp!) and I put 1000 rounds through the barrel.

Here's the stats:

60' - 250 rds - Four rounds missed the 8"x8" target. No BS. Fairly tight grouping, and there was a satisfying smack on nearly every shot.

75' - 250 rds - I missed the target 12 times at this range. They were all over the place on the 8" square, but almost all of em were there.

100' - 250 rds - I missed more than a few on this one (47)- there are a lot of reasons, but I think it was a combination of operator error and crappy paint.

150' - 250 rds - I only hit 91 (I missed way more than half the time) of these. It was still a fairly flat trajectory, but the balls were choosing their own adventure.

So, I like the functionality. I don't often take shots outside of 100 feet anyway. On to some less pressing factors.

Looks? It's pretty - a matte black, big fat bull barrel. I like it.

Weight? Some may dislike this. It's about twice as heavy as any other aluminum barrel of similar length. Why? It's thicker.

Cost? You get what you pay for. This beast is $70 at opsgear.com, last I looked. Find one on eBay, if you're concerned aobut the price.

All in all, well worth it, for me at least.    

Good review. It's a nice looking barrel, that's for sure. I couldn't tell from the picture of your marker that you posted... Is it ported?

not at ALL. no muzzle brake, no nothin'. can't believe i forgot that. less wasted energy, and it gives it a very distinctive sound.

Good! I love the unported barrels. LOUD AND PROUD. I would like to get a funnel type extension on the end of my barrel to direct the sound more and make it louder...

Now brings the question: Is it possible to get it ported and you chose not to or is it just non-ported standard?

porting's not an option. you could, i suppose, do it yourself, if you're a really decent metal-working type guy - which i'm not. i know my way around a hacksaw, drill press, and dremel, but no way am i confident enough to start drilling ports.

i hate to turn this into an ad, but opsgear makes two muzzle brakes, the 'dishka' and the m82a1, which they claim increase the sound your barrel makes. i dunno about this, but if anyone's ever used or seen one, let us know.

Very detailed review! Ya did a great job!!

Good review. Opsgear has amazing barrels. I myself shoot a 16" Operator, seeing as I have an M-4 styled gun.

PS. Hey Tybalt. You think the barrel shoots good now you should use a premium grade paint like X-Ball bronze or silver. You'll barely miss ever again all ranges. Those barrels are amazing.

Thanks, gents. My wife makes me buy cheap paint. Then she puts my cojones back in her purse.

I too recently purchased one of those for my 98c. Everyone at the field said it wouldnt work because it has no porting. Well it worked great! and shut them up Fast. it is my new favorite barrel. Good review, very informative.

yea I used to think any good barrel had to have porting .Tanks to some learing and an open mind I know outher wise now.